Jim James will release his first memoir, One Wonders, on April 13, 2027, via Simon & Schuster. Described as an open and vulnerable autobiography, the book is said to “detail his complicated evolution as both an artist and a human being.”
During One Wonders, the My Morning Jacket founder will dig into his at times idyllic, at times harrowing upbringing—from falling in love with music while watching The Muppet Show to suffering traumas he has never publicly shared. As the book’s announcement explains, James “recounts with equal nuance what it’s really like to be in a rock band, offering a kind of companion text to Donald S. Passman’s classic All You Need to Know About the Music Business: the grueling travel, toll on friendships, strain on romantic relationships and mind-scrambling financial implications mixed with the joyous gift of being able to unite and galvanize countless listeners over the years.”
For the first time, James also extensively details the gruesome injury he suffered on-stage in 2008 and how that lead him to a period of depression, excessive drinking and suicidal thoughts. He also opens up about how he eventually managed to acknowledge his mental health issues, address his alcoholism and find renewed belief in the power of music and the beauty of existence.
In a statement James adds:
Hello, friends! I am releasing a memoir!Why? Why write this book? Why now? As I’ve made good progress in therapy over the last five or six years, I’ve been doing a lot of reflecting on finding my voice- both as a singer, songwriter and musician, and as a person wandering the earth wondering…What do I really want to SAY with my life overall?
As I reflect on my own musical journey (from first learning to play the guitar to creating music in the present day) and navigating the complexities of life in general, I have been thinking a lot about my elders. For so many of them, tradition was to never speak about yourself. You carried your victories and failures, your joys and horrors, quietly.
A thought kept making its way into my mind: wouldn’t things be lighter for all of us if we shared more with other people?
I feel like it’s our generation’s job to tear down those walls and share our triumphs and horrors. When we do, we’ll find that we’re all walking around with the same things inside of us, the good and the bad.
It helps so much when we can find a way to let them out together, so that we can all begin to move toward a more peaceful and love-centered existence.
As if it WANTED this to happen and was WILLING it to happen, the Universe stepped in and began to line up the things I needed to write this book, bring it to life, and ACTUALLY PUBLISH it. And I began to realize its purpose:
Perhaps if I illustrated my journey, and how I began to deal with my own struggles with mental health, it could help people take a step toward getting out of their own darkness and depression.
If nothing else, I hope the main thing someone takes away from this book (aside from learning more about the joys and challenges of being a working artist and musician) is that it’s okay to ask for help. Everyone is going through some sort of challenge in this crazy world. IT IS POSSIBLE to find your way out of darkness and despair, and begin to enjoy the subtle, beautiful, everyday victories of simply being alive.
One Wonders will be available in hardcover, ebook and audiobook formats, with James reading the audio version. Signed copies will also be sold at Carmichael’s Bookstore in Louisville this spring.
My Morning Jacket recently turned in a series of guest-heavy, Grateful Dead-inspired shows at San Francisco’s The Fillmore. James will kick off a solo run at Louisville, KY’s Brown Theatre on November 28.
